266: Ten Thousand Buddhas Monastery

Head to Sha Tin in the middle of the New Territories for a look at this colourful temple complex. The grounds are a ten-minute walk from Sha Tin Station, exiting from the northwest side. Turn left at the HomeSquare building and look for the path to the temple at the end of Sheung Wo Che Road, just behind it. A few hundred steps lead the way up a hillside path, lined on both sides with golden statues of Buddhas of various forms. At the top is a spacious courtyard with pavilions, a nine-storey pagoda and the main temple hall, housing thousands more miniature Buddha statues, each one different. The complex also contains a restaurant serving vegetarian lunches. Entry to the temple is free and signs on the way up alert visitors to this fact to warn them of conmen masquerading as monks to take an entrance fee or ask for donations. In fact, there are no monks at this “monastery”, which was constructed through two decades' pious work by an elderly Buddhist layperson and his disciples.​